Early Derby, Patch Period, Diana Figurine, William Duesbury & Co., Ca. 1765

Figure of Diana in soft-paste porcelain painted in enamels and gilded. She appears ready for action, her right arm raised to take an arrow from a quiver on her back. In her left hand, which is at her side, she had a porcelain fitting for a bow. In her hair she wears a crescent, emblematic of the moon. She wears thonged sandals and a sash at her waist, while her loyal greyhound sits by her feet. The base, of swirled rococo scrollwork. Three 'patch marks' on the base.

The Derby Porcelain factory has its roots in the late 1740s, when Andrew Planché, a Walloon Huguenot refugee, started making simple porcelain toys shaped like animals in his back yard. In 1756 Staffordshire enameller William Duysbury and banker John Heath started a new porcelain factory with Planché and this was to grow out to the largest factory of its time, buying up the bankrupted Chelsea and Bow factories, as well as the stock of several other workshops including that of James Giles. The combination of various traditions, porcelain making skills and sophisticated clients enabled Duesbury to create one of the best porcelain factories of the 18th and 19th Centuries, which after many ups and downs is still operative today.

The reputation of the factory’s output was at its 18th century peak and in self-published advertising material, the “Derby Porcelain Manufactory” was proclaiming itself to be “the second Dresden”.

Duesbury maintained what would now be termed “retail space” independent of the Chelsea works, at a former pub – The Castle Tavern – in Bedford Street, Covent Garden. This was both a warehousing facility and an exhibition area, and was the shopfront for what had by now become “a very thriving and lucrative trade”. Derby porcelain was hand painted, some with with imari patterns, in London at the Chelsea pemises and the output from this dual operation is Chelsea Derby. Ultimately, the Chelsea site was closed down and the name Derby continued in increasingly splendid isolation, to the point where continued Royal patronage afforded Duesbury license to append a crown to his trademark, Royal Crown Derby Porcelain was born. It’s worth noting that Duesbury also used representations of the marks used on Sevres, Dresden and Berlin-made porcelain, as he considered his own wares to be superior to every other source other than those three.

Antique British porcelain is never perfect. Kilns were fired on coal in the 1800s, and this meant that china from that period can have some firing specks from flying particles. British makers were also known for their experimentation, and sometimes this resulted in technically imperfect results. Due to the shrinkage in the kiln, items can have small firing lines or develop crazing over time, which should not be seen as damage but as an imperfection of the maker's recipes, probably unknown at the time of making. Items have often been used for many years and can have normal signs of wear, and gilt can have signs of slight disintegration even if never handled. Some minor scratches, nicks, stains and gilt disintegration can be normal for vintage items and need to be taken into account.

Height: 28 cm

1543 g

Some wear to gilt; small losses to leaves and petals; losses and restoration to right hand; light purple staining to bottom of dress on reverse and a crack near the same place – it extends into the plant’s stalk, so is not easily visible; restoration to one flower; possible restoration to neck – very faint white line visible; restoration to bottom of quiver and losses to the green bows on quiver; losses to top of quiver; small losses to dog’s left ear.

This figurine appears to be part of a unique collection of porcelain Derby figurines, which has been meticulously gathered over many years

We must note that the 28cm of size is very rare, more common on the antique market are figurines of Diane 19.5 cm in siz